$270 Dollars and a Poetry Book

So today I got my first paycheck from my new job. $270 and 96 cents. Hallelujah! Life is good. Paychecks are good. Money is good. So lets see. I'll put $270 aside for rent, $270 for food, $270 for student loans, $270 for credit cards, $270 for a new dress and those pink shoes I've been talking about. Wait a minute. Is something screwy or are my math skills not working out again?

Regardless. I'll put addition in suspension for a moment and put $10 of the $270 aside for a poetry book. I hope the poetry gods will be pleased. Now I have $260 for rent, $260 for food, $260 for student loans...

Publication Strategies

Image via Red

Careful reading of the Poet's Market 2007 (Poet's Market)reveals an established order to poetry business. I flipped first to the most lucrative section, Contests and Awards, but found that I'm not eligible yet for most, as they require previous publication and a manuscript of at least 50 pages (mine currently runs c.25 pages). Also, most of the contests have hefty entry fees.

So, I've settled back a step and come up with the following criteria for initial publishing attempts:

1)No entry fees
2)Mostly e-mail submission (no funds spent on postage; also allows me to paste this blog into cover letter and thus build readership)
3)Kindred Spirit Factor (I'll apply to journals whose focus appeals to me and thus have fun submitting and fodder for future blog posts if nothing else comes of it.)